Urban League of Flint struggling to pay bills, shifts focus

View full sizeFlint Journal file photoA mobile museum display is set up in August at the Urban League of Flint.

FLINT, Michigan — The Urban League of Flint is struggling to pay its utility costs and other bills, and is shifting its focus in an effort to cut down on expenses, officials said.

The building, 5005 Cloverlawn Drive, is essentially in danger of having its lights shut off, said Jim Richardson, member of the Urban League Board of Directors.

"The costs of operating that building are pretty substantial," Richardson said. "We have to pay our (bills) to keep things going. That's the risk we’re currently facing with our facility."

As an organization, the Urban League of Flint is "very much still operational," Richardson said, but is planning to shift away from programs that are expensive to maintain, such as its after school youth programs and its job training programs.

Those activities have been phased out since the grant funding and contract commitments to operate them have gone down over the years, he said.

Now, the Urban League is going to focus more on advocacy, civic engagement, neighborhood improvement and economic development initiatives, he said.

"What we’re trying to do is enable African Americans and others affected by disenfranchisement and poverty to be able to have a full life and meet their potential," he said. "When we look at what's happened to our city and neighborhoods and communities and the stress parts of our community are under, in order to carry out our mission, we need to take a different leadership role.

"Direct services are great, but expensive. We need to focus our attention on what we can do."

The Urban League shares the building, which formerly housed a Flint school, with the New McCree Theatre.

The theatre is planning two concerts next month to benefit the Urban League and help pay the bills, said Executive Director Charles Winfrey.

The first will be held at 7 p.m. on Feb. 3 and the second, "Gospel Jubilee," will be held at 7 p.m. on Feb. 4, he said.

The ticket price is $15 for each show. The price to attend both shows is $25, he said.